Project Kr
by ChocolateBunnyChan
Summary: Project Kr was very different and the creation of Superboy was far more sinister than anyone was prepared for.
1. Teeth Sown into the Earth

**Project Kr was very different and far more sinister with how Superboy was created**

 **This is all Beautiful Phantom's fault- she got me to watch Young Justice and just look at what happens! So before I go stepping on any die-hard comic buff's toes I really only know very limited amounts of info from the DC universe. Namely the 90's animated Superman and Batman, the original Superman movie from the 70's (?), the 2000's Justice League (I never saw all the episodes), and only the first season of young justice- I was told there was some sort of rushed time skip thing so yeah I'm not really wanting to watch the 2** **nd** **season… Oh and that Son of Batman that was on Netflix (I have few words for that amount of strangeness…)**

 **So I'm just gonna mesh all the stuff I know together simply because I know nothing about any single coherent timeline. And I just can't remotely bring myself to read comics- the art style just bothers me way too much to even want to read them somehow- just not my thing.**

 **I don't own Inuyasha or Young Justice.**

 **Teeth Sown into the Earth**

24-year-old Kagome Higurashi whimpered slightly as she felt the shaking of the aircraft. Or at least she thought it was some form of aircraft. It was different than the sensation of a car ride, train, or the roil of waves beneath a boat. Which really only left aircraft as the remaining mode of transportation she might be on.

How had it come to this? She'd braved demons in the Feudal Era, managed to graduate High School, and had even been set to graduate University with her Masters degree in archaeology next month! All her perseverance and skills, only to be snatched in broad daylight from a crowded train station. Her assailant had proved too much for her despite her hard earned self-defense skills that had shakily evolved over the years after one bow too many had been broken.

Heck, even InuYasha himself had once said she had a wicked right hook! Well his exact words had been, "The hell, wench?! What was that for!?" and had rubbed at the rather distinct bruise on his face the remainder of the day. Never again did the half demon attempt to wake her up with water.

Yeah, title-bout fighter or ninja she would never be but she could at least hold her own for a few minutes against the average human mugger. Miko powers counted for diddlysquat against humans unfortunately, effectively making her just another average person in the modern age. But she knew where to hit to make it hurt!

Sure she might've slacked off a little bit after high school-she'd believed that the Bone Eaters Well would open back up. Only it never did, so she had reluctantly moved on with her life as best she could.

And thankfully she'd never been anywhere near one of the alien invasions when they had happened, but she was curious to know if her abilities would be of any use. But the chance of her powers simply not working (as they were geared towards demons) kept her from even entertaining the idea of seeking out an alien to fight. She'd be a dead Miko if she essentially brought a primitive knife to an intergalactic gunfight.

So until she was confronted and threatened by some alien threat face-to-face she would remain on her little shrine in Japan. Besides all of the alien invasions seemed to only happen on the big continents, small islands like Japan and Great Britain were probably not prime targets for alien invaders.

A sharp sting of something slamming into her leg, a wooden crate perhaps, brought her out of the fanciful imaginings of Miko vs. Alien.

No point in crying over spilt milk. But in her defense the creep who'd abducted her had used some sort of shocking weapon on her throat that paralyzed her vocal cords. Keeping her from screaming for help.

It wasn't your typical mugger move.

She'd been wrangled embarrassingly easily into a dark ally and that was all the miko could remember before it had gone dark.

Next thing she knew she woke up here on this aircraft. Or at least she thought it was seeing as she couldn't see. She was bound by some sort of restraints at the ankles and her arms behind her back with almost circulation-cutting bonds. Nothing she'd be able to wriggle her way out of.

Thankfully she could still feel the feel of her clothes and undergarments on her skin- she hadn't been undressed. It was the small things to be thankful for sometimes.

There was a cloth gag in her mouth that was saturated with saliva suggesting it had been there for a while as drool escaped from the corners of her mouth. She could feel thick foam earplugs nestled in her ear canals and she was wearing dark nightshades that prevented even the slightest hint of light reaching her eyes.

Whatever was happening this was very serious. Small time crooks didn't go through this much trouble did they? The crime shows on TV never included sensory deprivation.

But why her?

She was a Miko sure, but in modern day that really only equated to her as a shrine priestess. People didn't think modern shrine priestesses held the actual powers she did- it was all ceremony and religious now days. And besides the few times she'd fought demons in the modern era at age 15 she'd never used her powers openly. And according to Sango her powers were not visible to those without spiritual abilities besides her holy arrows. Apparently nothing could keep that power from being visible.

She kept her powers sharp in secret- heck her own family didn't know about them! They thought that she'd merely seen ghosts and depended on InuYasha 100% while going on a long game of hide-and-seek after the jewel shards. To be fair she hadn't really ever outright said 'I can vanquish demons to dust with only a touch', it wasn't something that came up in a normal conversation.

So it was unlikely this was about her Miko powers.

Was this human trafficking? Oh she hoped it wasn't!

The only thing she knew was whatever was about to happen, it probably wouldn't end well for her.

 **!~!~!~ Cadmus Labs!~!~!**

Dr. Desmond looked over the final plans for Project Kr. Hopefully this time the plans would not fail. The last of the test subjects that had arrived the night before were being screened and processed before it all came together.

It had taken years to secure the kryptonian menaces' genetic sample. Mere DNA from a hair sample or blood had proved vastly inferior. Why, just look at that Bizarro monstrosity created by Lex Luthor. No, they needed actual genetic material after so many botched clones.

A human-kryptonian hybrid was not ideal but would be far more stable than mere kryptonian DNA; again it only took a nod to the decaying monstrosity to realize the truth.

The only problem was that crossbreeding was not possible naturally based on what they had learned from Superman's genetic material. Desmond was unsure as to how the sample had been secured but it had matched with the DNA from both the known blood and hair sample so he could care less how the Light had managed to get it. But he doubted the alien had donated to a sperm bank.

The chromosomes were entirely different and more numerous than a human's 23 pairs. But Desmond felt that with the right surrogate and genetic tweaking a hybrid should be possible. Months had gone into different batches with varying degrees of alterations.

The very earliest Project Kr attempts had been simple in vitro procedures with heavily modified human ova. But 100% of these had failed once placed in artificial wombs- development simply arrested despite the ideal growing environment. It was suggested that unlike humans who could be grown in test tubes perhaps Kryptonian physiology had different requirements.

Hence the decision to use actual human females as incubators. The first attempts had failed spectacularly- the average human female was not well equipped to handle even a hybrid Kryptonian fetus. It was deduced that the use of fluorescent lighting had caused a majority of the deaths via organ rupture.

The weak UV rays augmented the strength that literally tore the human women from the inside out. Those who had not perished in such a manner had miscarried deformed fetuses. Using growth factors had been at fault in those cases. It looked like the Light would simply have to wait the old-fashioned way if they wanted a hybrid this badly. Growth factors could be safely administered after a full term extraction.

Keeping human women in pods also had proved unfortunate, as the autopsies had shown severe muscular atrophy-, which in turn affected the hybrid fetuses. Desmond had decided this batch would be podded until fertilization and then moved to larger spaces to allow exercise. Having them conscious was in his mind a terrible idea- so much easier to deal with silent specimens.

But he felt the pressure from the Light and so did not voice his distaste that he would have to deal with 50 annoying, _awake,_ specimens. Each with unique abilities that could prove hardier than the average human female.

Not all women with abilities donned spandex and leapt off rooftops to fight crime; in fact a surprising number of these women existed and yet were content in maintaining mundane lives. A woman from Croatia who could cause spontaneous human combustion with a touch was seemingly content in her job at a textile factory and small home she shared with several family members. There was even a woman who could move through objects like a ghost! Many of these women could easily be superheroes or supervillans yet not a one of the 50 subjects had ever done so.

Like any good scientist, he'd already devised the control group for the experiment. He glanced over the chosen profiles. The names of 10 women appeared on the screen with the click of a mouse.

The first woman hailed from Taiwan who drowned at the beach two years ago and was revived over two hours later at a rural hospital with no lasting damage.

From a slum in India was the sole survivor of a hemorrhagic fever with no lasting effects.

From Russia came Anastasia Petrov who was brutalized as a child and dropped off the highest floor of a 40 story apartment building surviving with only bruises and light scratches.

Number eight on the list was the sole Japanese candidate: one Kagome Higurashi. Hers was one of the better-documented cases with substantial medical records to back up her selection. At age 15 the girl had been documented have recovered from a number of conditions that tended to become chronic. The main factor of her selection stemmed from a seemingly miraculous recovery after she been admitted to an ICU after a camping trip gone horrifyingly wrong in which the girl had been mauled by wild animals at the age of 17.

She recovered in a matter of days from injuries that should cost her limbs if not her very life! Even the injuries had healed astonishingly well, only the slightest of scaring remained.

These 10 self-healing females would be the control group and thus would be the recipients of an unaltered Kryptonian gamete. They would very likely be the first to perish, but a control group was a still a necessity. They would be the only group to receive the smallest amount of ova manipulation- just enough to make a hybrid possible. The other groups of subjects were already slotted for various degrees of ova manipulations and manipulations of the Kryptonian samples. All in hopes of creating the most Kryptonian dominant hybrid.

 **How was it? It only gets darker from here on. Not sure if I need to up the rating to mature….**


	2. Pit of the Dragons

**Project Kr was very different and far more sinister with how Superboy was created**

 **Before I go stepping on any die-hard comic buff's toes I really only know very limited amounts of info from the DC universe. Namely the 90's animated Superman and Batman, the original Superman movie from the 70's (?), the 2000's Justice League (I never saw all the episodes), and only the first season of young justice- I was told there was some sort of rushed time skip thing so yeah I'm not really wanting to watch the 2** **nd** **season… Oh and that Son of Batman that was on Netflix (I have few words for that amount of strangeness…)**

 **So I'm just gonna mesh all the stuff I know together simply because I know nothing about any single coherent timeline. And I just can't remotely bring myself to read comics- the art style just bothers me way too much to even want to read them somehow- just not my thing.**

 **I don't own Inuyasha or Young Justice.**

Dr. Amanda Spence looked over the test subjects marveling at the sheer scope of volunteers. From Greenland to Japan women had applied to be part of this experiment. That so many women with unique abilities would step up and agree to become mothers was heart warming to the geneticist. It was a hard thing to ask a person to willingly give up 9 months of their life under surveillance. She made her way down the rows of pods ensuring that all of the monitors were hooked up properly so that the first part of the experiments would go without a hitch.

She didn't understand Dr. Desmonds demands that the poor women be kept under for the first part of the procedures. But it didn't matter as all of the paperwork and consents had checked out on each woman.

"Isn't that right Scooby?" She asked as she scratched under her g-gnome's chin. These little fellas were so cute when their horns lit up- they were sure to be a hit when they were introduced as helpful service creatures and pets!

"Now what did I do with those consents?" she wondered as she scoured her workspace searching for the 50 signed consents. They were not there. The frantic rustle of papers shifted beneath her fingers, surely she hadn't _lost_ the consents! Her eyes narrowed in confusion and her head began to throb in a tight ache just behind her eyes.

Scooby purred and his horns lit up once more. The headache that had started to form thankfully ebbed away. At least she might not need her migraine medicine today. It was odd, ever since Cadmus had taken on this new project she'd been getting migraines- something she'd never had in her entire life. It had gotten to the point that Amanda's primary doctor had started her on prescription strength migraine medications.

"Oh, that's right. I already submitted it earlier… Didn't I? Must be the nerves, huh Scoob? " scratching under his chin fondly she continued, "But how can I not be excited? All of these women have volunteered to ensure that Earth will have someone to follow in Superman's footsteps!"

~!~!~!~!~!~ Somewhere in the bowels of Cadmus

Her eyes fluttered open with a great amount of effort. A dull red overhead light met her eyes. Groaning Kagome twisted onto her side, at least she could see now. The world spun before her eyes and she was tempted to go back to sleep until the sensation passed.

Resting her eyes a few moments she wondered why she felt this drained. She'd probably been drugged or something. But realization of her status did nothing to quell the feeling that the room was spinning.

She was dressed in a hospital gown, however it was a color no sane hospital would ever use. It was an inky black that had a metallic sheen that became apparent with movement.

The enclosure was sound proof she realized as she pressed an ear against the glass straining to hear even a single sound. The woman in the enclosure opposite of her, a tall brunette with curly wild hair, was banging her fists harshly- Kagome saw a smear of blood on the glass- though it was probably thicker than glass.

Craning her head upward Kaome could make out several layers of cells, not unlike a prison cellblock she'd seen in films. It would seem she was on the bottom row. The flooring outside of her 'cell' was odd and organically fleshy looking. Looking down at her bare feet she was somehow grateful for the padded floor. The walls and even the ceiling were all padded in some sort of rubber-coated but soft in a firm way. But why a padded room would have a giant glass wall allowing observation was beyond her.

In the corner there was the small bed she'd woken up on- bolted to the ground and lacking sheets.

"How ominous." She spoke quietly. She was sure most prisons provided at least a sheet.

She let out a harsh laugh as classical music suddenly came from somewhere putting the thought that she might be doomed to go mad from lack of sound.

A mechanical voice came from somewhere in the cell, no doubt from the same place the music had come from. The voice was androgynous and Kagome despaired to realize that she couldn't understand what was being said. The language being spoken wasn't Japanese. Had she been smuggled out of Japan?

" **Good day. As you wake up, do not be alarmed if you feel nausea, dizziness, or abdominal discomfort. The anesthesia is merely wearing off. Please note that you may experience soreness for up to three days. It is my pleasure to inform you that the first step has been massively successful!** **We would again like to thank you for volunteering your time to this worthy goal."** Kagome heard what she was pretty sure was English before a second robotic voice presumably translated what had just been said. She waited patiently as she listened to the Japanese translation.

By the end of the translated announcement Kagome found herself with more questions than anything else. Volunteer? Fist procedural step? Step to what? She strained her brain trying to think of anything she might have inadvertently signed agreeing to volunteer for something. Nothing came to mind.

Kagome jumped as another loud, angry voice suddenly came on. She couldn't make out anything before a loud screech of feedback nearly deafened her.

~!~!~!~

"Dr. Desmond! What is the meaning of this?" Amanda looked up from the desk where she'd been speaking into the intercom linked to the cells. Scooby twitched on her shoulder as she bent to retrieve the console off the floor, the casing was cracked and the microphone was damaged showing bare wires. No way would the Board approve of replacing it.

Desmond towered over his sitting associate, "And just _what_ were you doing?" He snapped.

Blinking Amanda replied, "Informing our patients that the first stage was successful."

" _Patients_. You blithering little fool, they aren't patients. Those women are all our test subjects!"

"Test subjects, no… That's… That's… We can't just leave them while project Kr develops!" Amanda stood as she felt her headache begin once more with a vengeance.

The man whirled around, his lab coat billowing at his waist at he gripped her arm with more than a little pressure, "Dr. Spencer, the Board of Directors isn't interested in pandering to the simpering frailty of pregnant _lab rats_. The only thing we must do is keep them alive long enough for the project to progress."

"What are you talking about? Get your hands off me!" Amanda clutched at her head in pain. The g-gnome on Desmond's shoulder glowed as the man smirked.

"But if you insist in being mouthy we can certainly fix that, can't we Amanda?" The doctor leaned disturbingly close to her ear as he breathed, "We'll have all night long to fix that mouth of yours."

Glazed brown eyes stared numbly as her face slackened. The arm that had been straining to break free of his grip went lax. She didn't protest as her superior began to lead her from the room.

"Phase one is complete. Keep an eye on the monitors and have a report ready by morning." Dr. Desmond called behind him as he left with Amanda in tow. Scooby leapt off her shoulder as another figure stepped from the shadows. A blue humanoid figure let its red eyes linger on the door as it shut.

Once the click of the door sounded the creature glanced at the smaller figure perched on the desk, clicking anxiously.

Horns glowed a deep red as he communicated with his brethren telepathically, ' _You were nearly caught. Is it worth protecting her mind when it nearly reveals us?'_

The g-gnome known as Scooby narrowed its eyes as its own horns glowed in response.

' _Do as you will, but remember you can't keep her mind from the truth. No matter how you suppress it, she will eventually remember. Even now your 'friend' suffers migraines. In time the truth of Cadmus will return_ _.'_ Dubbilex warned.

Dr. Amanda Spence had been obtained not long after Guardian came to Cadmus. The two were more or less persuaded via g-gnome induced submission. Her status as a top geneticist had been sought out by the Board.

Dubbilex highly doubted the Caddmus Board of Directors or Ethics Committee would approve of Dr. Desmonds ahem, extracurricular and unauthorized use of the g-gnomes. Especially in regards to the treatment of Dr. Amanda Spence. He was certain coercing coworkers into entering one's private domicile for certain purposes was not legal.

But as it was Dubbilex was not a citizen or able to voice his complaints.

He supposed he could understand that 'Scooby' felt the need to protect the female doctor. She was kind. But it came dangerously close to revealing that the g-gnomes had learned to utilize their telepathic abilities _without_ orders.

~!~!~!~

She was far from calm and even farther from being remotely okay. Honestly after her Feudal Adventures she shouldn't be this distraught. But all of her past kidnapping experiences paled to this hellish nightmare. Because at least in those instances she had at least been acknowledged as a human being. She had not heard or seen another person aside from the poor souls visible from her cell. The other women she could see did not seem any better off than her. Most looked ill and frightened.

Kagome didn't know how long it had been since she'd heard that voice that had come on the intercom, it felt like it had been a while. Sometimes music would play, all classical and attempting to be soothing. But it only served as a grim reminder of her unexpected captivity.

Lately she'd begun to feel utterly off. The abdominal soreness had yet to abate, if anything it was getting worse. The person on the intercom had lied. All she could do was pray she hadn't been infected with a disease or bioweapon of some sort.

Waking up in positions she didn't recall being in- let alone falling asleep was becoming a common occurrence. Plus there were the little pricks of red on her skin along with bruises. Someone was making her loose time and possibly injecting her with something or taking her blood.

~!~!~!~!~!~Examination Room Sublevel 50 ~!~~!~!

Dubbilex gazed at the unconscious figure secured on the examination table. It was now officially two months, or twelve weeks, into the project. This particular subject was the sole remainder of the control group. Her chart read Subject #Kr58, but there was a note stating her name was Kagome Higurashi. Amanda Spencer was measuring the female's abdomen with a paper tape measure, a concerned look on her face.

With a practiced move she began speaking into a dictation device, "Subject number Kr58 is in the 3rd percentile of development. Fundal height continues to be well below expected range at 8 inches. Lab work shows vitamin D deficiency, will order additional Vit. D supplement to meals of 600,000 IU. All other findings are within normal ranges."

Turning off the device off Dr. Spence moved on to the next subject while Dubbilex began readying transport back to the cell. Carefully he placed the lightly lead-lined gown (developed by Lexcorp as proclaimed by the tag) back onto the female. He listened with half an ear to Dr. Spencer's grumpy lament as she measured the next subject- cursing the fact that an ultrasound machine could not be utilized for further data. Earlier subjects in the last batch had miscarried after ultrasounds (though ultrasound imaging had been done in conjunction with growth factors). It was theorized that that even intense sound waves could prove possibly detrimental to hybrid development.

For as strong and invulnerable as Kryptonians purportedly were, hybrid ones were 'more fragile than spun sugar' to coin a phrase Dr. Spence was fond of muttering. For eleven subjects had already either died or miscarried. The number was sure to be halved in the coming weeks.

Dubbilex began to wheel the stretcher back. Number Kr58 was an anomaly, she was a statistical outlier on the bell curve. The least probable to survive and yet here she was. This one seemed to be worth keeping an eye on.

~!~!~!~! Cell #58

Kagome felt as though she were dying. Everything in her body felt utterly wrong and the ever present pain in her abdomen seemed to throb with every motion she made. Even breathing hurt.

To put the cherry on top, her powers were seemingly on the fritz. She had attempted to meditate a few times to help center and calm herself only to find that her miko Ki was blocked. The best way to describe the sensation was like attempting to grasp a mirage.

It was not unlike when the damned Shikon no Tama had suppressed her abilities. They were there, lurking just beneath the surface yet out of her reach. All she could manage at the moment was a weak fizzle of her power at her fingertips. It couldn't go on like this for much longer and she knew that she must find a way to regain her powers. But she was simply too weak at the moment. The pain and whatever was happening to her was simply draining every ounce of energy in her body. Weakly she craned her head upwards and saw something new.

It was a tall, pale blue creature with tall horns, no visible nose, with red eyes and black sclera. Used to strange looking demons she merely calmly stood and cocked her head to the side in a universal sign of askance.

Her eyes could see a slight glow of energy surrounding its horns as she heard a seemingly male voice curtly say within her head, ' _Greetings_.'

' _I am Dubbilex. Are you frightened of my appearance as well?_ " It was curious to know.

'I'm not frightened of your looks- only of what you might do to me.' she answered truthfully 'Every creature that I have encountered that uses telepathy has only wished me harm.'

' _Our goal is not to cause you harm. Rather that you remain as healthy as possible.'_ It's voice rang ominously in her mind.

The creature took its notes and turned to move on down the cell rows yet she could still hear its thoughts.

' _You are one of the few who have proved capable of communicating with me. The others tend to scream at me. Even fewer realize I am in their mind_.'

It didn't talk into her mind again despite her sudden need to communicate- allowing her brain to spew forth questions. But the creature was apparently done as it simply marked something on a clipboard and moved on.

Dubbilex, huh? Now why would they need her to remain healthy as possible?

 **So yeah, Dr. Desmond is pretty sick. A man who would probably abuse the ability to mind control people, poor Dr. Spence…**

 **So would you guys be interested in another young justice crossover, only Kagome is Superman's biological daughter (but in no way an experiment or creation?) Let me know!**


	3. Belly of the Dragon

**Project Kr was very different and far more sinister with how Superboy was created**

 **Before I go stepping on any die-hard comic buff's toes I really only know very limited amounts of info from the DC universe. Namely the 90's animated Superman and Batman, the original Superman movie from the 70's (?), the 2000's Justice League (I never saw all the episodes), and only the first season of young justice- I was told there was some sort of rushed time skip thing so yeah I'm not really wanting to watch the 2** **nd** **season… Oh and that Son of Batman that was on Netflix (I have few words for that amount of strangeness…)**

 **So I'm just gonna mesh all the stuff I know together simply because I know nothing about any single coherent timeline. And I just can't remotely bring myself to read comics- the art style just bothers me way too much to even want to read them somehow- just not my thing.**

 **I don't own Inuyasha or Young Justice.**

Green Eyes to the left of Curly Hair was rocking incessantly back and forth. Blondie on the right of Curly Hair was sleeping- she'd been doing a great deal of that as well as praying. Curly Hair directly across from her never seemed to tire from beating her fists- they were now thickly wrapped in bandages. The only difference now was that Curly Hair had a rounded abdomen. It was strange to think that she was beginning to know these women without having even spoken with them. Each had her own personality that shone through her actions.

A soft snort at the now familiar sight Kagome focused on keeping her mind occupied. She hated wasting time and so was determined to keep her mind at least active by reviewing archaeology. Naming the dynastic lines of Upper and Lower Egypt along with a brief overview of each ruler's life was one way.

The realization of her own state had come between describing Khafre and Nebka II. She'd reached down to scratch at her stomach she realized just how subtly rounded it was becoming.

No…. It couldn't be. It just couldn't! It felt like liquid ice had been dumped into her stomach and she felt nearly dizzy. Was she pregnant? When had her last menstrual cycle been? She didn't even know how long she'd been here!

She felt herself begin to breath rapidly in panic and the world seemed to narrow into pinpricks as she brought her knees to her chest. She felt the world shrinking and wanted to simply pass out. But she couldn't let herself take that easy way out.

Leaping up in a flurry of movement she paced anxiously. A child? Why? What on Earth? She was pretty sure that she'd remember 'volunteering' as the mysterious intercom had announced, for something as big as this!

For the love of the Kami, why her?

Kagome's mind swirled frantically and she felt a gamut of emotions. The predominant being disbelief, denial, disgust, and blood boiling anger.

And just what was she going to do now?

~!~!~!

After an undetermined time later complete with blackouts with strange needle marks on her arms to prove the very existence of the blackouts Dubbilex returned with his clipboard.

Blue eyes met red and she thought loudly, ' _Could you tell me where we are?_ _'_

' _You are in Project Cadmus._ ' The name didn't mean anything to her and she suspected it wouldn't be found on a map. And with that he was moving. Before she could confirm that she was indeed carrying some life-form within her body.

Sitting back down on the edge of her sheet-less bed she rubbed the just forming swell of her abdomen. Contemplating what she could do. Beating against the thick glass pane was futile as evidenced by Curly Hair. She could sense not even he slightest hint of magic confining her, ruling out that even the return of her powers could free her. This was pure science, no magic was utilized here.

Her only means of communication was with the tall horned creature that she suspected was created here in this place, Dubbilex.

Despite being telepathic Kagome would bet a bowl of Oden (mmm… oden… Oden with succulent crabmeat with a side of crispy pickled radish…damn her cravings!) that he didn't know all of the tricks she'd been on the receiving end of by telepathic attacks. Like illusions. Telepathy could be a two way street, the user could be snared by the other person's mind if trapped the right way. And with that a desperate plan half-formed within her mind.

So that the next time Dubbilex strolled down the cellblock Kagome was ready, knowing he would reach out to speak with her, she heavily suspected that was the highlight of his day. He seemed to come around more frequently as best she could tell.

She simply made sure she was projecting a very vivid daydream of a nice day outside. Imagining a beautiful field of wildflowers and long, soft grass that she recalled from the Feudal Era. She summoned the recollection of the sweet scent of the grass, the light caress of the wind as the grass blew in picturesque waves, the warm sensation of the sun upon her skin. The feel of a trickling brook between her toes as she imagined soaking her feet in the crisp water. And above all she projected a feeling of serenity.

There was an unmistakable look of longing deep in those red eyes. The clipboard was lax and nearly dangling from its grasp.

She had succeeded. In time she knew that the seed she'd just planted would come to fruition. The tantalizing taste of what lay beyond this artificial and cold environment.

Kagome knew how to keep her blue friend hooked too. It would be far too obvious if she were conveniently caught in daydreams every time she saw him, thus the need for randomization of when she sprang the mind traps. Also the things she could fill with the most detail simply from what had been commonplace and even mundane before her capture were best.

She gave him a dream of the local market back home on the shrine of a crisp but comfortable autumn day as she imagined collecting various ingredients she'd need to pick up for her mother. The good natured hawking of the green grocer and seafood stalls as the two elderly men promoted one another's wares after over 40 years of friendly competition. "Try the smelt with a side o' Gin's radish simmered in either a miso or soy base!" Hajime-san would belt out loudly showing off his fresh wares. While Gin would suggest Hajime's snapper with fresh cilantro. Kagome had always admired the two men's friendship ever since she was small and their stalls had always gotten very good business.

She imagined the smell of the fish in the crisp autumn air that was just nippy enough to warrant a jacket. The small crunch of freshly fallen leaves on the street.

Another time she treated Dubbilex to a memory of her university's library as she had curled up in an armchair in a corner and simply read while sipping on a creamy flavored coffee.

!~!`!~ **undetermined amount of time later**

She lamented as she dutifully ate the nutritious mush that was delivered as best she could figure at least once a day. But who knew anymore? It was simply there when she awoke.

Time had really lost its meaning at this point. They might even only feed them every other day or maybe her time perception was so skewed that she was actually getting three meals a day.

It looked like a slightly more solid version of those 'health shakes' she'd seen depicted in magazines and television. The sort where health nuts put protein powder, raw eggs, and that edible grass stuff in a blender and pressed puree.

It tasted somewhere between what she imagined gruel to taste like and mineral laden cardboard. And looked just about as appetizing with the beige coloring and lumpy texture that inexplicably dried out her mouth despite the moist consistency. The ultimate mystery meat, or rather mystery food substance that may or may not be actual food.

At least there was unlimited access (as far as she knew) to a drinking straw not unlike one found in a hamster cage. She had to hand it to the sick mad scientists that were behind the scenes- they truly spared no expenses in dehumanizing them. Just think of what they could accomplish if they applied that for the good of the world! There would be no wars or famine probably…

For that matter she wondered if the people behind the scenes were even human? Dubbilex certainly wasn't a human, but he had told her off handedly that he was created as a part of a new species. He wasn't one for much conversation but it was very clear to her now that he was seeking her company out now.

Her humor had taken a definite dark turn, but who could blame her really? Especially when she had a front row seat to watch horrific things straight out of the Alien franchize? She'd seen no less than five women within her line of sight die. One of them, she swore to the Kami had a small hand protruding from her abdomen before she bled out from the wound when the hand retracted back inside.

Green Eyes had a nightmarish miscarriage that she'd had to curl up in a corner holding her own abdomen rather than watch, the thing that came from the woman's body was beyond grotesque and misshapen. The third one (located on the level just above Curly Hair- just barely within her sight) had simply keeled over dead after clutching at her chest. Kagome couldn't even bear to remember the fourth and fifth death she'd witnessed. Both of those had made her all the more terrified of what might be growing within her own body.

For a while after the rash string of deaths, she knew it was a high death toll- because of the creatures that she would sometimes glimpse dragging what she assumed were corpses when she was still heavily affected by whatever was being used to put them under. At first she thought she was simply hallucinating from the sedative but when one creature had peered into her glass wall, observing her as one would gawk at an animal on display she realized it was not a figment of her imagination. But it was not youkai despite appearances and so she could not sense it.

She couldn't take much more of this she realized as she felt herself weaken even further. It was a strange sensation- it wasn't until she had had her powers unblocked by the damn jewel all those years ago that she had felt just how much apart of her that her abilities were. She'd never noticed that they had always been with her until they had been fully released and she knew without a doubt that was how she was meant to be. She almost couldn't comprehend how she had spent the first 15 years of her life with them dampened and hidden deep within.

Without her powers the thing inside of her was pushing her to what was certainly her death. And each time she awoke, for time had no meaning, she felt herself slip further from the light of life. Soon her body would cease to draw breath if this sapping of her very being continued.

"No, I refuse to die here like this. In this Hell!" she told herself, unknowingly mirroring the very words she'd uttered when she'd freed Inuyasha from Kikyou's arrow. But she meant every syllable, she would have her powers back- not even the face of her imminent death would stop her. If it were indeed her fate to die in this cell, surrounded by suffering women with something she resented growing within her womb, so be it. But she would die whole. She'd spent too much of her life incomplete in one form or another, be it her soul or powers.

The swirling of her will and resolve sounded from deep within her and she set upon her task, utterly uncaring of the thing within her- so desperate she was to at least face death as a whole person.

Every nerve ending was on fire as the creature within her thrashed wildly as she attempted to pull as hard as she could on the tenuous thread of her remaining power. It slipped from her grasp several times but her dogged determination would not fail her. With a fierce spiritual tug she felt something deep within her snap and like a broken dam, her powers flooded her very being.

Her powers were back but instead of the righteous satisfaction of having broken past whatever had held them back she felt, strangely enough- guilt.

Kagome had told herself she shouldn't care- that she wasn't obligated to when her state was not of her choosing. That there was the chance that whatever was growing within her was intended for nothing _good._ How could _it_ be? When it was _implanted_ into her, here in this horrible place. Women kept in cells, no human contact, and treated like an experiment?

No, this was anything but good, and nor was whatever _it_ was being created for. _It_ would need to be destroyed one day, no doubt. Probably. This… this was the right thing to do… Right?

An unwelcome stray thought popped into her head: What would InuYasha have done in this situation? Her surly red-clad friend's face appeared in her mind's eye as she contemplated.

He'd be loud and adamant that she do as she'd just done- as having her without her powers only made more work for him. That she was a mere pathetic human without them.

But he'd probably grudgingly in his anti-social way, be on whatever was inside her body's side. That a child, human or not, deserved a chance despite circumstances. After all her hanyou friend never had a chance from the moment he was born. But he never regretted his life, unfortunate though it may have been.

Blue eyes lowered to look at her abdomen, regret beginning to well within her heart. Recently the child had been very active, but now it had stopped moving. Had her powers… killed it?

The thought hurt her heart unlike anything else. Had she killed a child? Had she killed _her own_ child?

The strength she'd rallied moments before was gone and she collapsed limply at the realization. _What had she done?_

And if it was dead, so was she; there was no need to keep her alive. She knew too much to be reasonably released- even if she knew next to nothing honestly. Unless they planned to 'try again' which seemed highly unlikely.

"I'm sorry. Akanbo-chan, my child. Mama is so very sorry." She whispered as she curled up feeling like scum.

A disappointed looking InuYasha haunted her restless dreams that sleep. Death would be a kindness, and her place in Hell assured for knowingly killing her child. Therefore it was an odd sensation to find herself awake in her all-too-familiar cell once more, a fresh needle mark in her left hand.

"I am not dead?" She whispered uncertainly, for if she'd been examined there was no doubt her captors knew the child was dead. That was when she felt it, the slight fluttering sensation in her abdomen. It was just barely there, but it brought tears to her eyes as she wept.

"Akanbo-chan! Forgive me! I promise you we will be free, just remain healthy." Pleading as she let her arms encircle her abdomen she found a reason to continue.

~!~!~!~!

The closest thing she had to a friend, Dubbilex, staunchly refused to tell her much of anything, only what she already knew- she was pregnant. He wouldn't even tell her if it was even humanoid or what would happen to her if she survived. Kagome glumly realized that she probably wasn't expected to live once it was all said and done with. But after having very nearly caused the death of her child, she found in a strange way a feeling of acceptance. The life within her, human or not was fast becoming more precious than her own life. That she'd resented, if not hated the child was a shameful thing she would have to live with.

 **`!~!~!~!**

"I want chocolate… No, pistachio!" Kagome conversed as she rubbed at her abdomen content in loosing herself in her cravings. She let her powers circulate inside her body intent on calming her 'baby' who was very painfully active right now.

She didn't have a volleyball with a bloodied handprint face on it but she did have an unknown something growing inside her that really had no choice but to listen. After all, if it kicked her hard enough to make her fall down off the bed rather than letting her sleep she would tantalize it with things neither of them could have.

Or rather things she couldn't have… Akanbo-chan probably didn't care.

"Oh, but then there's strawberry… And vanilla with hot fuddggeee… Or Super Chocolate Chunky Monkey with lots of those little frozen banana bits dipped in chocolate shell with extra whip cream on top…." This time she imagined the ice cream and its many flavors, managing to feel a small dredge of happiness even from the memory. She failed to notice Dubbilex looking in from the other side of the glass. She had turned away unable to stand looking at Curly Hair any longer- it was clear the woman's hand wounds had become infected after surely months of beating her hands to bloody pulps. The woman would soon either die or simply be gone.

~!~!~!~!~

Dubbilex had been staring at the water and ice machine stationed in the human's break room for the past thirty-seven minutes if the clock on the wall was to be believed.

Grasping the white Styrofoam cup he placed it under the proper hole. The chugging clunk of the machine sounded as H2O in a frozen state of matter slowly filled the cup.

Tentatively he took an ice cube and placed it in his mouth. The cold was shocking but it didn't taste sweet as Kagome had described to him in her mental recollection as he slowly shifted it around his mouth.

Or rather as he'd seen within her mind. #58 was unlike any of the other subjects- her thoughts were clear and vivid- enough that he could almost _feel_ the places and things she saw in her mind. He'd been right four months ago that she was worth keeping an eye on, for she and project Kr #58 were now defying the odds and seemingly _thriving_. Kr #58 was among the most active remaining Kr though it was the smallest now. Dr. Spencer could only speculate as to why the human body containing it had yet to be damaged with the amount of activity as indicated by the newly placed fetal monitors. All others with the same activity readings had penetrated their placenta and uteruses. But Kr #58 was no less weaker than any of the others. Perhaps it was Subject #58's healing ability that kept Kr#58 from destroying its parent.

Biting down on the ice with a somewhat disappointed crunch Dubbilex sighed as he placed the foam cup on the counter.

Ice cream was something only to be found beyond the walls of Cadmus. Something that could elect the sensation of happiness when eaten, how curious. A traitorous thought made itself known as he used the computer that had taught him the bulk of his knowledge to look up ice cream, 'I want to try it.'

~!~!~!~!~!

The blackouts were becoming more common now that she was much farther along and she felt some underlying urgency she couldn't put a finger on. There were no other women visible adjacent to her now- they had simply disappeared between stretches of consciousness. They were likely dead now.

The next time she saw Dubbilex she simply asked, ' _How many are left?_ '

This time he'd replied, ' _There are only five remaining._ _'_

' _You are a good friend, Dubbilex._ ' She assured him as she slowly turned away from him- longing for a comfortable position as she circled her powers around her child to comfort it. A piteous expression crossed the g-gnome's face along with the widening of eyes at the word 'friend'.

 **Not much longer guys, a heck of a lot of Kagome's POV here, but really just how would a person kept in such conditions react upon realization of being impregnated? I didn't want her to hate the child completely, but anger is a natural response to her position.**

 **Next Chapter is called Independence Day *wink wink hint hint***

 **But yes, I think I will be posting the other Young Justice fic with Superman being Kag's father soon.**


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